The present invention relates generally to coffee makers, and more particularly to coffee carafes.
Coffee makers are commonplace in household kitchens. The majority of these devices brew a batch of coffee and then store it for consumption within a short time. Some coffee brewing devices store coffee in a removable container, called a coffee carafe, that rests on a heating element within the brewing device during brewing and heating. A coffee carafe generally holds six to twelve servings of coffee, and includes a handle for carrying the coffee carafe without contacting hot coffee or hot parts of the coffee carafe. Coffee is brewed into the carafe, and the carafe is used for serving. To this end, most coffee carafes include a pouring spout opposite the handle that permits the user to grip the coffee carafe by the handle and pour coffee into a cup or different drinking containers.
For most conventional coffee makers, the coffee carafe is often used to fill the coffee maker prior to beginning the brewing process. A user fills the coffee carafe with water to a desired level, e.g., six cups, and pours the water into the coffee maker. The appropriate amount of coffee grinds are added to the coffee maker, and the coffee carafe is placed on the heating element. The water is heated in the coffee maker, and flows through the coffee grinds, brewing the coffee. The brewed coffee flows into the coffee carafe.
Most coffee carafes are glass so that a user may easily determine the amount of water being put into the coffee maker. The clear glass coffee carafes typically include measurement markings along an outer surface of the glass to aid the user in determining the amount of water in the carafe. The measurements are also helpful for determining how much coffee remains in the carafe.
Using glass for the carafe has other advantages. Glass is resistant to the high brewing temperatures, and is sufficiently thermally conductive so that coffee may be heated while the glass carafe is sitting on the heating element.
Although prior art glass coffee carafes work well for their intended purpose, there are problems associated with their construction and use. One problem is attaching the handle, which is typically plastic, to the glass portion of the carafe, herein referred to as the glass jar or decanter. The attachment of the handle to the jar must be sturdy to avoid accidents. Attaching fasteners to glass is difficult, because fittings are difficult to form in glass, and are brittle when formed. In addition, although adhesives may be used to attach the handles, their use is limited, because many adhesives break down at the high temperatures used in brewing and heating coffee.
For many contemporary coffee carafes, the attachment of the handle to the coffee carafes is provided by a metal band. A grove is manufactured at the upper neck of the glass jar. A metal, annular band extends around the grove. The handle is mechanically attached to the metal band. This solution works well, but many users do not like the appearance of the annular metal band. Coffee and other materials may lodge behind the band, and may be difficult to remove. Moreover, the narrowed neck portion of the glass jar limits the alternatives for providing a pouring spout. Forming the pouring spout integrally with the glass is difficult, because a large structure protruding from the neck may be subject to breakage, and to small of a structure may provide poor pouring (e.g., dripping or other problems).
As an alternative to the annular metal band, many manufacturers utilize an integral pouring spout and handle structure that is attached to a neck of a glass coffee jar. The combined pouring spout and handle structure is typically formed of plastic. Often, the plastic structure is clamped to the neck of the glass coffee jar, but the clamped attachment of a pouring spout is time consuming and costly. Even when the spout is clamped tightly during manufacture of the decanter, it tends to become loose during usage.
Other manufacturers utilize adhesives to attach the integral pouring spout and handle to the glass coffee jar. These methods of attachment also have their problems. The use of adhesives is limited, because many adhesives cannot withstand the heat generated during the coffee-making process. Moreover, of the adhesives that can withstand the heat, the bond formed between the adhesives and most plastics is not sufficient to provide the strength needed for securing the handle to the glass jar. Thus, typically only acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) plastic may be used in these structures, which is expensive.
Other manufacturers use epoxy to attach the handle and spout structure to the glass jar. Epoxy forms a rigid seal between the pouring spout and handle structure and the glass jar, but can be brittle after hardening, and may break during shipment or handling. In addition, epoxy resins do not adhere well to the usual spout materials, allowing the seal between the spout and the glass to be readily broken and cause fluid leakage.
The present invention solves many problems of the prior art by providing a coffee carafe with a hidden handle support. The handle support is an annular band that extends around a neck of a glass jar for the coffee carafe. A handle for the coffee carafe is attached to the annular band, for example by a screw.
An annular collar fits over the annular band. The annular collar includes a pour spout and an annular flange that extends against an inside surface of the neck of the glass jar. A silicon adhesive or other suitable bonding agent is used to hold the annular collar in place.
The annular collar covers the handle support, hiding it from view. Thus, the outer surface of the coffee carafe, formed by the annular collar and the glass jar, is smooth and sleek in appearance. The handle support is protected from the coffee by the annular collar, preventing coffee from flowing into the seal between the handle support and the glass jar, and providing a coffee carafe that is easy to clean.
The use of the annular collar provides strong support for the handle. In addition, because the bonding agent that holds the annular flange in position against the glass jar does not have to support the handle, materials other than acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) plastic may be used for the annular collar and the handle. For example, polypropylene may be used as the material for these two components.